Climate Change News – A Global Shift
Climate change is a very real thing, and the effects have already begun to show. There are many influential people even today who do not believe in climate change, and continue to highlight the fact that climate change isn’t happening. In fact, if you were to take a look at some of the biggest news on climate change in the past, you would realize that not only is climate change happening as we speak, but it’s also begun to show. Nature acts in different ways. In many cases, the effects don’t show until it’s too late. Temperatures across the globe have already begun to rise, and temperatures in countries located close to the Equator have especially begun to spike.
In order to give you a better idea of the very real effects of global warming, here’s a summary of recent news on climate change.
India Records Highest Temperature Ever
One of the clearest indicators of global warming is when temperatures begin to rise across the globe. India is one of the biggest countries in the world, with a population of 1.2 billion. It’s also considerably underdeveloped, meaning most of the population doesn’t even get access to basic essentials, such as light, clean water, and energy. Many people still live in huts made of caked mud, using wood-powered stoves. Poverty is at an all-time high in India, making it difficult for most people to afford even basic essentials.
Summers in India get extremely hot, and not everybody can afford air conditioning. Many people simply put handkerchiefs on their head and then douse them with water under the scorching sun to allay the heat. This May, temperatures in the Western State of Rajasthan rose to an all-time high, reaching 51 degrees Celsius.
The temperatures were recorded in the town of Phalodi. Two other towns also recorded temperatures in excess of 50 degrees Celsius. New Delhi, the capital of India, reached a high of 47 degrees Celsius. This clearly highlights the fact that global temperatures are rising and could impact the population. Thousands of people die due to excessive heat and lack of preventative measures in places such as India and Pakistan.
Renewable Energy on the Rise
The governments of many countries have realized that thermal energy is not sustainable at all. Burning coal and fuel in order to generate electricity also leads to a series of harmful emissions that damage the environment considerably. Not only do they lead to the type of smog that we have seen recently in Beijing, but these emissions can also increase temperatures locally and globally. As a result, many countries have now begun to focus on increasing renewable energy production. In a simple look at past events relating to climate change, most of the news revolves around efforts made by governments in order to increase production of renewable energy and limit their reliance on non-renewable energy sources.
People in Germany Paid to Consume Electricity
Germany has always been one of the world leaders in renewable energy. The country produces a considerable amount of its total energy using renewable methods, and just a couple of months ago, the government briefly paid individuals to consume electricity. Most of us are used to the idea of paying our electricity bills. But, did you ever think that you could get paid for just using electricity? This is exactly what happened in Germany. It is an extremely rare phenomenon that hasn’t been recorded before in the country.
Solar and hydroelectric power plants in the country produced 54.6 GW of power, which is almost 80 percent of the country’s total requirement of 68.4 GW. Because of that, power prices took a steep fall, falling as low as -€130 per MWh. As you can see, this means that energy providers were actually paying distributors to take all of that excess energy off their hands. This is an extremely positive sign, and bodes well for the future. Other countries are also following suit. For instance, Australia has recently launched a series of initiatives in order to increase production of renewable energy and take it up to about 25% of the total energy consumed by 2020. A small summary of past events and major movements on climate change indicate that governments are now making active efforts to curtail the use of thermal power and focus more on renewable energy production.
First Mammal Falls Prey to Manmade Climate Change
Even though countries have already begun to make amends and limit production of thermal power, the effects of climate change have already begun to take their toll on the environment. It was widely predicted that climate change would start killing off mammals, and it seems that this has already happened. The Bramble Cay melomys used to live in the Great Barrier Reef, just off the coast of Queensland. It was last seen back in 2009. Recently, scientists carried out an excursion in order to see if the mammal was still present. Sadly, they could not find even the slightest evidence in its last known environment. This year, the mammal was declared extinct, with the official cause stated as human-induced climate change.
From Gas to Stone
Iceland has made one of the biggest breakthroughs in the world of climate change, turning carbon dioxide emissions into stone. Even though the machinery is still in its prototype stage and the tests are still being conducted, this could prove to be an historic event. Carbon dioxide is released when fossil fuels are burned. It retains heat in the atmosphere and this leads to increased temperatures. Turning the gas into stone is a major step forward in making machines and many chemical processes more efficient and environmentally friendly. Despite being a relatively small country, Iceland has managed to achieve one of the most significant breakthroughs in climate change history. Even though it’s still quite early, the news is promising. Of course, it takes a while for improvement to show, but at least the governments of the world are uniting for a greater good!
